Hephaestus's Girl
by RangerGal98
Summary: So a girl is running and she falls unconscious by Thalia's tree. She wakes up to find she's been nursed back to health by Luke. She's afraid of everyone but Chiron at first. She is scared to death by all the people. You don't know her past, but you can guess at her future. Is Connor Stoll her future? Or will she fall for Luke Castellan. Read and find out in Hephaestus's Girl.
1. Chapter 1

**RG:** ** This is my first story, so it may be pretty bad. Bear with me and review so I can learn what to do better. I will try to update daily, but understand that I can sometimes have other things to do, or I'm just not inspired to write. Anyway, Have fun reading. ㈳6**

Chapter 1:

I was... I don't know what I was. I remembered running for that pine tree then... nothing. I could feel myself waking up, so I assumed that I had been unconscious. I opened my eyes and saw I was in a room, on a bed. This confused and scared me. I fell by a tree, how did I get in a bed? Then I noticed the boy. He looked about six years older than me and had blond hair. I didn't care though. All I thought was, well I was pretty much thinking like a mouse when it sees a cat. _Run like hell_.

I had learned over the years not to trust other people, especially men. Not when your a little helpless orphan girl. Well, not helpless, but you get the point.

Anyway, I freaked out. I pushed myself off from the bed and tried to kick the guy. I forgot one key thing though. I had just been unconscious for who knows how long. I couldn't have hurt a fly, much less this teenager. I fell back to the bed with a thump. I'm ashamed to say that's what caught his attention, not the kick I gave him.

"Chiron, she's awake," he called through the doorway. A man walked through the doorway. Well I say a man, but it was only the torso of a man. The rest was the body of a white horse. That made me relax. That meant he wasn't human or monster. Chiron was the teacher to all heroes. That meant he would help me. It sounds crazy, but I trusted someone half horse more than a human, even if it probably was a demigod. Chiron walked over to me.

"Are you alright?" he asked kindly. I relaxed and nodded. Then the boy spoke and I stiffened.

"What's your name?" he asked. I could hear kindness in his voice, but you aren't to trusting as an orphan. If you are you don't last long to learn. Being constantly attacked by monsters doesn't help either.

Chiron must have noticed me stiffen when the boy talked, and he looked at me sympathetically.

"Luke was the one who found you. He brought you back here. You don't have to be afraid," he said. I relaxed slightly, but was still on guard. I decided to act like I didn't know anything.

I made it look like I was scared. I really was scared, so I just buried every other emotion I was feeling and let that one shine. The boy, Luke, handed me a cup to drink from.

"It's ambrosia," Chiron informed me, seeing my skeptical look. I did, and spit it all out. It didn't taste bad, just unexpected. It looked like apple juice, but tasted completely different. It tasted like the chocolate cake my mom baked me for my fifth birthday. Luke laughed at me. I glared at him, but he just laughed more. I felt around in my pockets and found some rubber bands, a few pieces of mortal change, and a three gold drachma. I took out the rubber bands and the mortal money and started fiddling around with them. I ended up with something like brass knuckles, only stupider. I looked up to notice that Luke and Chiron were staring at me. I realized that I must be acting like a certain kind of demigod and stopped fiddling around, but it was a conscious effort not to make something else.

"Do you think you can walk now?" Chiron asked. I nodded, and sat up. I was amazed to find that it was really easy. I went to stand, but fell. Luke caught me and held me up. He put my arm around his neck and helped me walk out of the door. We walked out of the house, and I saw an amazing sight. It was a camp. I could see kids playing volleyball with satyrs. I saw naiads weaving at the bottom of a lake. I saw a forest, where dryads were wandering around. I saw the strawberry fields, with satyrs playing reed pipes and some kids tending the plants. Lastly, I saw the cabins. There were twelve in the shape of a U. Three were at the top, and the others were on the sides, all facing inward. From here I couldn't make out details, but I could tell each was unique.

"Do you want to explore," Luke asked me. I looked to see that he was smiling at me. I was nervous, but at least I knew him. It would be worse to wander around surrounded by strangers trying to get to know me.

I looked at his face, and noticed a long scar over his blue eyes. He caught me looking and smiled.

"Come on, I'll show you where you'll be staying until we know who your godly parent is." I wanted to tell him, but was afraid to. I decided to wait. If dad wanted to claim me, he could go ahead.

It was just my luck that the undecided cabin was the loudest and fullest cabin in the camp. It was the Hermes cabin, but undecideds stayed there too. There was a space on the floor for me, but it only had a sleeping bag. Of course, when I came in, everyone stared. I realized that I was still hanging on Luke, but I knew if I let go I would fall again.

"There's a space for you to sleep over there. Dinners in a few hours. Just follow everyone else." He smiled at me, before passing me off to two boys who looked exactly alike. I decided to keep a hand over my only possessions just in case.

They helped me over to my spot, and, sure enough, I felt a hand reach for my pocket. I slapped him, and glared at both of them before sitting down. I took out my celestial bronze dagger, and checked to make sure it wasn't rusted or dented. It was fine so I put it back.

After what felt like forever, it was time for dinner. I followed the cabin to the pavilion and sat as far away from everyone else at the table as possible. This is quite hard when the table barely fits anyone. When a fat man in a Hawaiian shirt stood up and got everyone's attention, I could sense the power he possessed. He had to be a god.

"So, the unconscious girl has woken up, but hasn't yet told us her name. She is undecided so far, so she is staying with the Hermes cabin. Why don't you give her a warm welcome or whatever you kids do. Everyone cheered, but it was half hearted. Why hadn't I told anyone my name? Was it a secret or something? Just then some nature spirits started giving out food. I realized that everyone had a goblet.

"Just say what you want, and it'll fill up with it," one of the Hermes cabin members told me. I looked and saw that it was one of the twins. I frowned at him, but he just laughed.

"I'm Connor Stoll, son of Hermes. My brothers Travis." He was polite so I shook his hand, but he tried to pick my pocket, so I hit him again. At least I think it was again. I didn't know which one tried it the first time so I couldn't really tell. He smiled at me, unfazed.

"So," he asked, "What's your name. You haven't told anyone yet. We have to call you something?" He seemed honest, but there was a problem. I can't talk. I looked away and his eyes widened.

"Are you mute?" He asked. I nodded. He just stared at me wide eyes. Then his face got a mischievous grin. "So you can't talk." I nodded. "Or make any sounds or noises." I was suspicious, but I nodded. "Interesting." I knew he was up to something, but I didn't know what. I glared at my cup, hoping thinking would get it to work, but it didn't. Connor saw my look and laughed.

"Coca-Cola," he said. My eyes widened as my glass filled with Coke. He laughed, then got up. "Come on," he told me. We got into a line, and I saw people offering up food. They were burning it for the gods. At my turn I dumped the best part of my meal into the fire and asked my dad to claim me soon.

After dinner, everyone went back to their cabin. I went to my spot on the floor to find a pile of clothes and toiletries with my name on them. I looked up to see Connor smiling at me, and I smiled back.

I was jostled awake. Someone was carrying me. I went into attack mode and kicked the person in the crotch, they grunted but kept going. I started to flail around to get out, but then I heard Connors voice.

"Is that anyway to greet your date." I realized that Connor was carrying me over his shoulder. He set me down when I stopped flailing. I turned to go back to the cabin, but realized that we were in the forest. I had no idea where to go. I looked back at him to see him grinning mischievously.

"That's no way to treat your date," he said, still smiling. I reached for my knife, to find it gone. I glared at him and he spread his hands, a hurt look on his face.

"Why would you assume that I would take your knife?" he tried to hide it, but I could see the smile he had on his face. I kept glaring at him until his grin broke through and he through back the knife. He grabbed my wrist and started dragging me through the forest. I followed reluctantly. He knew the way, I didn't. It was a choice of following him, or dying out here. I was still weighting my options.

After a long walk, he finally stopped. We were at a beautiful beach with a clear view of the city. My mouth opened in shock, but being mute I didn't make a sound. Connor was smiling at me, and he gestured to a picnic blanket with some Cokes on it. I smiled, then remembered what he had said before. Didn't he say that I shouldn't hurt my date? I decided to worry about that later. For now, I would just enjoy the time.

I walked over to the blanket and say down. Connor sat down next to me and put his arm around my shoulders. It felt nice so I leaned over and rested my head on his shoulder. He handed me an open Coke, and we both sat there drinking in silence. Finally he asked me a question.

"What's your name?" he asked. I leaned over to reach the sand and wrote out one word. _Leah_. "That's a pretty name," he said. I realized he was the first person who knew my name since my mom died. I looked away, then realized how tired I was. I put my head back on Connor's shoulder and fell asleep.

The next morning, I woke up to shouting. I heard people calling Connor's name. I opened my eyes and realized that we fell asleep together. I was about to shake Connor awake, but he looked sweet, so I just watched him sleep for a bit longer. After a minute or two, he opened his eyes to find me starring at him. I blushed, which made him smile. Then I heard someone shouting that they found us. I looked and saw a group of people running our way. Connor and I got up and went over to them. They stopped cold and started shouting about something. They were looking above my head, so I looked up. I would have gasped, but as it was my mouth opened and my hand flew up to it. Above my head was writing. _Leah Helena Baker Daughter of Hephaestus_ was written above me in fire.

**Yep, first chapter has a cliff hanger... Sorta. I hope you like this first chapter. Continue reading and see ya later! ㈳5**

**PS- I like your shoelaces! ㈶1**


	2. Chapter 2

**RG: Ok, so here's the second installment. I hope you like it. It has some emotional/dating type stuff, which I've never experienced, and some action, also out of my range of expertise. I hope I capture them well. R&R! ㈴1**

Chapter 2:

I was glad that dad had claimed me. It made sense for Hephaestus to be my dad. I loved to tinker, and so did mom. Plus, there was my other skill. Hephaestus was god of fire too. There had to be another like me, right? I mean it isn't that bad a power. I didn't mean to burn down my house. I don't mean to kill mom and Lexi. It was an accident. It could be prevented by training.

While I was lost in though, our group got back to camp. One person ran off to tell Chiron, while one person from the Hephaestus cabin came to show me my new cabin. Connor ran off to grab me my stuff, while the cabin leader, Beckendorf, led me to the most high tech cabin. Inside he showed me how each bed folded into the wall, and you entered a combination into a key pad to access it, where there were shelves on the side to store personal possessions. He then took me to the forge and gave me some basic equipment to use. I went back to the cabin, and bumped into Connor an the way. He handed me my stuff with a grin and walked away. When I got to the cabin, I put the rest of my stuff on my shelves, then took out a sketch pad, a pencil and an eraser to start designing something I had wanted for a long time. A new voice.

_I was running through a the house. "Mom! Lexi!" I shouted, trying to find them. I found Mom's room, but the door wouldn't open. I ran to the room I shared with Lexi, but the door was blocked. The smoke was choking me, but then something hit me on the head. Before I blacked out, I saw someone or something bending over me. _

I woke up in my bed. I looked around wildly for a moment, before remembering that I was safe. The fire had been years ago. Nothing to worry about now.

"Everyone!" Beckendorf shouted, "Get up! Time for breakfast!" That got everyone moving. No one wanted to miss breakfast. We walked to the pavilion, where we sat at our table. It was a lot less crowded than the other tables. Though, I found I'd rather sit at the Hermes table. Here I just sat off to the side. There, Connor talked to me...

My classes were relatively hard. I couldn't fight with a sword that well, but I was good with my knife, I was good with a lot of knives. I could throw them and hit a bullseye. I was good at getting in close to fight with them. I was especially good with two knives together. I was also pretty good at archery. I wasn't as accurate as with throwing knives, but I was better at hitting a far away target with and arrow than a knife. Other than that, I was ok in other classes. I was awful at the climbing wall. What sucked was I always got hit by the lava. What rocked was I was immune to fire, so it didn't hurt. Everyone else thought I was very good at dodging lava. I knew it was my power.

At the end of the day before dinner, I was free, so I went looking for Connor. Luke stopped me on my way.

"What to hang out?" he asked. I didn't want to be rude, so I nodded. I noticed a girl from Athena cabin glare at me, and Luke laughed. "Don't mind Annabeth. She's just jealous," Luke said, smiling. I didn't know why she would be jealous. Luke and I were just friends. I didn't want enemies. I wanted to tell Luke I was looking for Connor, but I couldn't. I didn't know why. I just couldn't say no.

We walked into the woods. After a while, I only knew generally which direction the camp was in. I just hoped that Luke wasn't as lost. I must have looked scared, because Luke grabbed my hand and gave me a reassuring smile. I smiled back hesitantly. This wasn't what I had thought it would be. We were just friends, right? I didn't have a crush on him. I didn't notice how the scar on his face only made him more handsome. I didn't notice how his eyes were like two clear lakes. I didn't... Fuck. I did have a crush on him. But I also liked Connor.

My eyes widened when I realized what this would look like. I looked at Luke, trying to tell him I wanted to go back to camp, but he didn't understand. He just smiled at me. He thought I was scared. I got annoyed, and tried to turn around, deciding to find my own way back, but he just held my hand tighter and turned me around. He then put his arm around my shoulder, switching my hand to his other. He led me to a beautiful forest clearing. I stopped trying to leave and admired the beauty. He turned so we were facing each other. He was smiling at me, and I couldn't help but see the resemblance between him and Connor. I blushed and looked at the ground. His hand grabbed my chin, pulling it up. I looked up... And he kissed me. He put my hands around his neck, and his on my hips. I felt him try to deepen the kiss, but I broke free and ran. I ran until I found a tree I could climb. I guess a dryad took pity on me, because the branched seemed to move to help me up, then move out of the way behind me. I heard Luke shouting my name, but I just cowered against the trunk and cried.

Eventually, I started to climb down, the dryad helping me on the way. At the bottom, I said thank you in sign language, and the branches waved at me as I left. I got back to camp and went to my cabin. I didn't feel like seeing other people just now. I just wanted to think by myself. I continued my design for a new voice when I heard someone come in. I looked up to see Connor poking his head in. I smiled and waved back at him, gesturing for him to wait a second.

We went to the beach again. It was calm and relaxing. I rested on his shoulder, his arm around me. Eventually we lay down. We looked up at the stars together. I sighed contentedly, and he smiled. I looked up at him, and he looked down at me. I was in heaven. Except that I hadn't decided if I liked Luke or Connor. That was a problem. Connor didn't push me though. Eventually, we both headed back to our cabins. I got there and the lights were out, so I snuck over to my bunk and fell asleep.

The next day was pretty uneventful. I took my classes, practiced my archery, so on and so forth. That afternoon, something interesting happened. A boy and a satyr were unconscious by Thalia's pine tree. The rumor was that the boy had killed a Minotaur!

The boy's name was Percy Jackson. He was unconscious for a while, the Annabeth girl nursing him. When the kid finally woke up, he and Luke became instant friends. Luke showed him around, and I went out of my way to avoid them. I wanted to get to know the Percy boy since he was only a year younger than me, but he was alway with Luke when I was free. Plus I couldn't talk which was a problem. Connor and I hung out a lot, which was quite nice. We spent quiet evenings on the beach together. He didn't pressure me, and every now and then he gave me gifts. I tried not to thing too much on how he got those gifts, but it was nice.

Friday was capture the flag. The Athena cabin was working with the Apollo and Hermes Cabins, while Ares had everyone else. Sadly, that meant that I was against Connor, but I probably wouldn't run into him. The game started and I ran off into the woods. I was silent. No one could see me.

When I got to the stream that marked the border, I saw the new boy fighting some of the Ares cabin. I ran past while they were distracted. The boy was out numbered and outmatched, but they wouldn't hurt him too badly. At least that's what I told myself. I saw the Athena flag in the distance. I decided I would scope around for the best point of entry. I dodged traps set up around the flag until I found a point where the guards weren't looking. I ran up, grabbed the flag, and ran for it. It was a while before I heard shouting behind me. I smiled.

I got to the stream and saw that Percy kid near dead. I stopped in my tracks. He stepped in the water, and he looked like he was rejuvenated. He stood up straighter and prepared for Ares's children to attack. He calmly dispatched them with a lot more mercy than they showed him. I remembered the flag in my hands when I saw Luke running for the stream. I broke out of my cover and kept across the stream. I actually collided with Luke. He had been about to jump when I hit him. I got up and dusted myself off as the Athena flag changed to match the Hephaestus cabin. I was lifted onto my cabin members' shoulder. From that point I could see the hellhound before it leapt. I tried to warn them, but I couldn't. It really sucks to be mute sometimes.

The hellhound pounced on Percy, shredding his armor like paper mâché. Annabeth shouted something and Chiron shot the thing. Annabeth leaned over Percy and told him something. He started to crawl over to the water. He stepped in and everyone gasped. Above his head was a sea green trident. He was a son of Poseidon.

**RG: I hope you liked this chapter. Continue to read if you want. I want you too, but I can't force you. Well, I could send the death bunnies...㈄8**


	3. Notice

Sorry I haven't updated in a while. I've been helping out in my school plane and have had writes block. I have ideas now and will start updating ASAP. I'm really sorry for the delay. I'll have a new chapter posted by Monday. I promise on the River Styx.


	4. Chapter 3

**RG: I'm sorry I haven't updated for a while. I have been helping out backstage in my school play, and have had writes block. The little fairies who give me ideas kept taking me far ahead of where I was, and to places that couldn't be gone to. I'm sorry that I still haven't described Leah. It doesn't happen in this chapter, but I will start to put hints to it in coming parts. Again sorry for not updating for a long time. I hope this part makes up for that lapse. Have fun. ㈴6**

Chapter 3:

The poor kid was shunned. No one talked to him and he had to eat all alone. I'd figured out that I could sorta talk to people if I wrote it down then they read it. Of course this was hard since almost everyone was dyslexic. I used it only when necessary. I asked Beckendorf if anything prohibited you from going to other tables.

"No," he replied, "but the gods would be angry." I took the chance and went to sit with him. I asked Poseidon not to kill me since I was helping his son. I sat at the table to complete silence. Everyone was staring at me, even Percy. I tried to look confident, but I'm kinda shy.

"Leave her alone," someone shouted. I looked and saw it was Luke. I smiled at him, and he beamed back. I noticed Connor glaring at him though. Uh-oh... Everyone went back to eating.

"You didn't have to do that you know." I looked and saw that Percy had said it. I shook my head that, no, I did have to. He looked at me quizzically for a second before asking, "Why don't you talk?" I looked away embarrassed. "Are you mute or something?" I nodded. "Oh... Um... Sorry?" He sounded so unsure that I giggled, but no noise came out. He smiled when he realized I was laughing. "We're you born mute?" I shook my head. He was kind and decided not to ask anymore.

The next day, I was walking with Percy to our next class, and Chiron walked up to us.

"Percy needs to consult with the oracle." I nodded, and Percy followed Chiron to the Big House. Once they were there, I quickly ran after them and climbed in a second floor window. I quickly climbed up to the attic, hiding just before Percy walked in. He looked around, then this shriveled little girl shuddered, opening her mouth to let out a tendril of smoke.

_"You shall go west, and face the god who has turned. _

_You shall find what was stolen, and see it safely returned. _

_You shall be betrayed by one who calls you a friend. _

_And you shall fail to save what matters most in the end."_

The mummy thing clamped its mouth shut, as if it had never opened. When Percy left, I followed him silently. On the second floor, I went out the window and climbed down. I went to my cabin and sat on the bunk for a bit. I looked on my shelf, and found a note.

"I've taken your little boyfriend. You only have until the summer solstice to find him. I suggest that Percy Jackson might be your best bet if you want to save him." I was crying silently when Travis came in.

"Hey, have you seen..." His voice trailed off when he saw me crying. I handed him the note and curled onto my side. He read it, and I felt a reassuring hand on my shoulder. I looked to see that Travis had a determined look on his face. "You don't think I'm letting you go alone to find my brother, do you." I looked at him for a second before I smiled. I nodded my head. He nodded back, then turned to pack. I packed my bag, and went outside. I hid my bag in the roots of Thalia's tree before doing something I knew I had to do.

I found Luke in the arena. When he noticed me, he turned and smiled. I smiled back, and he must have believed it. He walked over to me and hugged me.

"Haven't seen you in a while," he said, still smiling. I looked away, blushing. I knew I had to say goodbye, maybe forever. But I couldn't think like that. He must have noticed that I was distracted, because he frowned slightly. "You ok?" he asked kindly. I nodded, then did something I didn't expect. I kissed him. It wasn't grand or anything, but I still did. I kissed his cheek, then ran.

I ran until I got to Thalia's tree, where Travis was waiting. The look on my face must have told him what he needed to know. We looked over the hill and saw that Percy was getting ready to leave. I saw Luke running to catch up, then giving Percy a shoebox. Percy seemed to thank him, but when Luke left, he handed them to Grover. I guess he didn't like them or something. Then Travis and I started for New York. That had to be where they were headed first. We followed the road, and actually got to the bus stop before them. We got on the bus they got on, careful to sit in the front so they wouldn't notice us there.

The bus ride was uneventful, until three old ladies got on. I looked at Travis, and he looked as scared as me. All three furies were here. Percy must be a huge threat. They walked down the aisle until they got to him, then changed to their true forms.

"Where is it! Where!" one Fury asked.

"He's not here! He's gone!" Annabeth shouted back, though I could swear that the Fury had said 'it' not 'he'. I noticed Percy wasn't with them, when I felt something brush against my leg. I looked and saw nothing. Then I noticed that the driver was fighting with the wheel. The bus swerved from side to side, throwing me into Travis, then against the wall. The bus wailed and crashed into the trees. Passengers stampeded out, Travis was swept out with them, but I was stuck. Percy materialized in the front of the bus.

"I'm right here!" he yelled. This distracted the Furies. They went up to attack him, but Annabeth attacked one, Grover attacked another, and Percy fought the third. I snuck up behind it and killed it. Annabeth finished off the one she was fighting, but Grover was knocked away from the one he was fighting. We heard the crack of thunder and ran as a bolt of lighting hit the bus. We heard a scream that mean the Fury was still alive. The four of us ran, and Travis caught up with us. We kept running for a while until we were out of sight of the bus.

"What are you two doing here?" Percy asked. I looked away, not wanting to think about it. Travis covered for me though.

"We're on a quest of our own," he explained hurriedly. It was the truth. He never said we had permission of it, he just said we had a quest. Percy nodded, believing us. Annabeth was more suspicious. I felt her staring at me, and shivered. She scared me. A lot.

"We should keep moving," Annabeth suggested. I nodded in agreement and we started walking ahead. The boys followed us.

We all started feeling the effects of hunger after a while. We started slowing down and looking for a place to set up camp so we could search for food. We found a giant building on an abandoned road while looking. None of us demigods could read it, so Grover read it aloud.

"Auntie Em's Garden Emporium." I chuckled silently at that. We gonna find Dorothy in there or something? I asked my self.

We walked up to the gate and looked around. The whole front yard was full of statues. All of them had anguished expressions on their face. I started to get a bad feeling in my gut. Something about this seemed familiar. But I followed the others up to the front door. I silently snuck Annabeth's Yankees cap out of her pocket and put it on. I stayed with them, but now nothing could see me. They got to the front door and knocked. After a moment the door was answered by a woman wearing a veil.

"Where are your parents? Are you lost?" she asked when she saw us.

"Uh.. We're part of a traveling circus and the ringmaster told us to meet him at the gas station, but he must have meant a different gas station or we're lost. Do I smell food?" I face-palmed. Note to self, don't EVER let Percy come up with a cover story. Amazingly, the woman bought it.

"You poor dears! Come inside. I'll get you all some food." She opened the door and we all went in. I heard a hissing noise as I passed her. That was when I remembered why this was familiar.

_I was ten. My mother and sister were dead. I was wandering the streets and two ladies found me. I didn't trust them, but they were nice and offered me food and a place to stay. I hadn't slept in a bed for a long time so I said yes. They took me to a store called 'Three Sisters Baked Goods.' They must have seen my questioning look because one said, "Our other sister used to work here, but she left to start an emporium." _

_That night, I heard hissing and found out that the two ladies were Gorgons. They were Steno and Euryale. _

I realized what that meant. They had said their sister ran an emporium. Medusa ran an emporium. AUNTIE EM WAS MEDUSA! I had to warn the other. I could tell them and we could all... Shit. I couldn't talk. Well... What now?

**RG: if you have suggestions for future parts, do tell. I'm only fourteen so I could use any help I get. Thanks for reading, and please review. ㈴3**


	5. Chapter 4

**RG: Hope you like this chapter. It's kinda short, but I wanted a cliff hanger at the end. R&R. ㈳8**

Chapter 4:

I followed them to a cafeteria, trying vainly to come up with a plan. How could I get their attention. Wait a second. I was invisible. I could attack Medusa while invisible, and then we could leave. I wouldn't inform them of the plan, and they would just run away. Or attack me, but I would put my life on the line for theirs.

They sat down, and Medusa brought out food. She sat down with her, and I walked up a few feet behind her. I had a sack to put her head in when it was cut off. No one was getting turned to stone on my watch. I took aim and shot a jet of fire at her neck, beheading her. I stopped the flame before it hurt anyone. I picked the head up and put it in the bag, not looking at it. The others were staring at the spot where Medusa's body was turning into gold dust. I plonked the bag in the middle of the table and let go of it. They gasped as it appeared out of nowhere. I fell to the floor at the look on their faces, laughing silently, tears streaming down my face. The hat had fallen off my head, so they could see me. They all glared at me, but Travis saw the hat and smiled.

"How'd you get that off Annabeth?" he asked, grinning. I just smiled back mischievously. Annabeth turned red and snatched up the hat, glaring at me. That just made me laugh harder. Her face was priceless Percy and Grover were grinning, but a glare from Annabeth and the grins disappeared.

I picked up the bagged head and held it up, raising my eyebrows. Travis understood.

"She wants to know what to do with the head," Travis said for me. I smiled at him gratefully.

"I don't know," Percy said. We all looked at Annabeth.

"Why are you looking at me?" she asked. We just kept looking, and she eventually sighed. "I don't know," she admitted. I got a big smile on my face, but not because I was making fun of her. I ran off into the back and looked around. I found a box for the head and some shipping labels for the HermesExpress. I found some drachmas and put a few in the shipping section of the label, mailing the package. I grabbed all the money in the register, mortal and Greek, and went back to the others.

"What happened to the head?" Annabeth asked suspiciously. I just smiled at her mischievously. She sighed and started getting ready to leave. I looked around for anything else of use, but found nothing. We walked outside, then realized we had nowhere to go. No taxis were on this road. I started setting up camp while the others looked for something useful. I found some rabbits and cooked them. The other came back to find plates of mystery meat for them.

"What is this?" Grover asked. I pointed to a plate of salad greens and other herbs I had gathered. He got a huge grin when he saw I had even found some tin cans. The others tried the meat suspiciously, but soon ate it all. I smiled the whole time. Finally Percy asked me what it was. My smile got bigger as I showed him the animal skins. They all paled and ran into the woods. A poodle wandered up, so I went over and picked it up. I found a bit of spare meat and gave it to him.

"Her name's Gladiola," Grover informed me. I nodded, petting Gladiola. The others came back, all noticeably paler. Gladiola seemed to chuckle. Grover came over and spoke with her for a while. He was explaining the quest. Gladiola was listening and nodding occasionally, understanding. She barked once. "She says her owners will reward us if we bring her back. She doesn't like them, but she'll go back to help us."

We returned the poodle, and got enough money for train tickets to Denver. We bought the ticket, but couldn't afford a sleeper car, so we were stuck sitting in uncomfortable chairs. I leaned on Travis's shoulder, and he put his head on top mine.

"He'll be ok," Travis said, though he seemed to be trying to convince himself as much as me. I nodded and closed my eyes. I could sleep for a while before the train stopped.

_It was a dark room, like a prison cell. A figure was huddled in the corner. The door opened, casting light on the huddled figure. My eyes widened when I saw it was Connor. Another figure walked in, but his face was in the dark. _

_"How do you like the accommodations?" the figure asked. Judging by their voice, it was a teen boy. He seemed to be smirking. Connor moved, and I noticed all the cuts and bruises covering his body. Some cracked open and started to bleed. Whoever had done this would pay dearly. _

_"How could you do this? We all trusted you, especially Leah," Connor said. I was shocked. Who was this figure who Connor said I trusted. If I trusted him, why would he hurt Connor so much? I noticed that the figure flinched when Connor said my name. Connor noticed it too. He smiled. It was a small smile, but it was there. "She'll hate you for this you know."_

_"But she won't know it's me." The figure seemed to be smiling. "Your brother will know who I am before I dispose of him, but Leah will think I tried to save you and your brother, but couldn't. It'll be perfect." By now I really hated this guy. _

_"She'll never believe you."_

_"Of course she will. You said it yourself. She trusts me. Why would I betray her." This guy was really getting on my nerves now. _

_"She'll never believe you, because you won't have proof,..."_

**RG: Yes. I stopped before the name. Me evil like that. ㈴0**


	6. Chapter 5

**RG: I would love it if more of you would review. I could use the help. I know what I'll do for the Lotus Casino and for the end, sorta, but not what happens in between. I hope you like this chapter. R&R peeps. ?**

Chapter 5:

Travis shook me awake.

"We're at the Gateway Arch. Annabeth wants to check it out." I nodded and we all exited the train. We got in the line to see the Arch, and Annabeth started stating tons of facts about it. I listened, but the boys didn't even pretend to.

We eventually got into the elevator with a family and some woman with a chihuahua. The chihuahua growled at me, and the woman clicked her tongue at it.

"Not now sonny," she said, shaking her head. I found it odd she called it sonny, but it was probably just a nickname.

We got to the top, and I marveled at the view. The boys got bored quickly, but Annabeth and I loved it.

"The Arch is closing now," the park ranger informed us. Everyone crowded into the elevator, but there wasn't room for Percy and me. The other started to step out but I gestured for them to go down. The chihuahua growled at us again when the elevator started going down.

"Now now son. Look at all the nice people here," the woman said. The chihuahua continued growling so she said, "Alright son."

"Um... Did you just call that chihuahua son?" Percy asked. My hand slipped down to the knife I had borrowed from camp

"Chimera," the woman corrected. "It's and easy mistake to make though." My eyes widened. Did that mean... "I'm Echidna, mother of monsters." Uh-oh.

"Isn't that a type of anteater?" Percy asked. I face-palmed.

"I hate that they named that stupid creature after me!" Echidna shouted. "Attack, son!" The chihuahua changed in to a chimera and attacked. Percy was attacked first. It shot a stream of fire at me, trying to distract me. It didn't work. I leaped on its back, stabbing it with both knives. The goat head attacked me, so I stabbed it in the eye. I remembered the snake head when it sank its fangs into my neck. I silently screamed and fell off. The whole platform tipped to one side, making me roll over to Percy. He realized I was hurt just as the chimera hit right behind him with a huge jet of fire. It burned a whole clean through the wall. It also burned Percy a bit. The family and ranger screamed. Percy ran to the stairs and broke open the door.

"Run!" he yelled. The ranger ran first, followed closely by the family. The chimera took the time to bathe me in a jet of flames. That just made me warm. Percy realized I was in danger, so he ran over to me. "Do you trust me?" he asked. I nodded suspiciously. He smiled. "Hold onto me tightly." I did as told, and he did something unexpected. He jumped out the hole in the wall. I held on tightly. I thought we were going to die.

We hit the water. The impact ripped me away from Percy. The current took me down river until I sunk to the bottom and was buried in muck. Only my face was visible. I saw something descend on me just before I blacked out.

_It was raining. I was running for my life. I was only 6. My house had burned down a month ago. Tomorrow would be my birthday. But I couldn't think about that now. I had bigger problems._

_It wasn't a monster chasing me. It was a mortal man, but to me he was worse that any monster. I had stayed the night in his house, but it didn't end well. To put it bluntly, he was a pedophile. I wasn't at his house long, but it was long enough. _

_"Get back her kid! I'm not done with you yet!" he yelled. I was scared out of my mind. I could only keep running. Then, a silver arrow shot out of nowhere, killing him instantly. I looked around wildly. I was now even more scared. _

_A young girl who looked about twelve dropped down from the tree she had been in. _

_"Are you ok?" she asked. She looked kind, but so had the man. I shrunk into the shadows, trying to hide. "Don't worry. I won't hurt you," she said soothingly. I tentatively stepped out of the shadows. She could be lying, but she didn't look like she was. "What's your name?" she asked me. I just looked away. "It's ok, you can tell me," she said. I shook my head, then pointed to my throat. She frowned, not understanding. I sighed silently. Being mute was hard to get used to. Understanding dawned in her eyes. "Are you mute?" she asked. I nodded. She smiled gently. "Do you want to come with me. I have a group of girls like you. We could take care of you if you want." I nodded and she teleported me away in a flash of silver. _

_We appeared in a camp full of girls. No one was older that 16, and there were no men or boys anywhere. I looked around, taking it all in. It was beautiful. The girl took me to a big tent. She sat down and told me all about the camp. She was the goddess Artemis. She asked if I wanted to join. I was afraid of men, but I knew some were nice. I didn't want to be away from them forever. I declined, and she nodded. _

_"There will be a place for you until you are too old to join. You can always change your mind," she smiled and teleported me into a different forest. It was beautiful. I heard animals and saw lots of plants that I could eat. There was a camouflaged shelter to my left, and I went in. There was twin hunting knives for me and a beautiful bow with a quiver for silver arrows. There was a not that said 'From Artemis' and I smiled. I would be okay. _

Black was all I saw. I heard voices in the background.

"Is she okay?"

"She should have woken up by now right?"

"Is she dead?"

"Of course not you idiots." That was definitely Annabeth. The others must have been the boys.

"Hey! She's waking up!" That was Travis. He was sitting right next to me. I opened my eyes to see them all staring at me. Travis smiled down at me, and I smiled back. I stood up, and fell. Travis caught me and sat me back down on the bed. I lay down again, embarrassed. They all laughed.

"You should see the look on your face!" Percy said laughing. I grabbed my dagger from my belt and threw it. It cut of some of his hair just above the ear and hit, quivering, on the wall with the trapped hair. He looked afraid. I smiled evilly, and he stepped away from me. Now we were all laughing at him. I got up, and managed not to fall this time. I went over to a mirror and was relieved to see I still looked the same. Same raven black hair. Same deep blue eyes. Same tanned skin. But I noticed my hair had grown out a bit. I looked at Travis, and he understood.

"You were out for a week," he said. My eyes widened. No way was I unconscious that long. I then looked over at Percy, remembering how I had nearly drowned when someone picked me up. I signed thank you to him, but he looked confused.

"Why are you thanking me? We found you unconscious by the river," he said. My eyes widened. How did I get there? I was drowning when someone picked me up and saved me. It seemed familiar, but I dismissed it.

"We should get moving again. There's another train headed to Denver. We could still use our tickets," Annabeth stated. I nodded, and we started packing. While they were packing, I took out my knife and hacked my hair into a rough bob-cut. I looked down and cleaned up the loose hair.

I turned around to see Travis staring at me. When he saw me looking he blushed and looked away. What was up with him you ask? Well, I wish I knew.

We got on the train, and all sat down for the ride. I took out my sketch book, and started to draw the scene from my dream of Connor. The other person, I drew as an outline in the shadows, but I drew Connor in great detail. I captured the look of disgust on his face as he spat out what he was saying. I even drew in all the cuts and bruises he had. By the time I finished I was quite tired. I closed the sketch book and leaned on Travis again. Everyone said he and Connor were the same, but they were both quite different. I could tell the difference. You would only notice if you knew both well. I did.

I noticed that Travis had put his arm around my shoulder and had his head on my head. It was comfortable, so I didn't comment. I fell asleep peacefully for once. No dreams at all.

**RG: I hope you liked this chapter. Please review this story. I'm new to writing and could use all the help can get. ?**


	7. Chapter 6

**RG: I'm sssoooooooo sorry for the long delay! I had many ideas, but this scene was evading me! I just couldn't think of how a daughter of Hephaestus would react to meeting Ares! Seriously guys, I do need I do need input from you guys for some of these parts. **

Chapter 6:

I woke up when we got to Dever. Now we had to figure out how to get from Denver to the Underworld in LA. We had to IM camp because apparently Percy had been contacted by a water spirit while I was drowning. We went to a gas station with stations to wash your car, and looked at the price.

"75 cents. I have 50," Percy stated. I pulled a quarter out of my pockets and handed it to him. Grover grabbed the spray nozzle and Percy out in the money. When we got a rainbow Annabeth said,

"The Big House, Camp Half-Blood." Luke appeared on the rainbow and looked our way. I hid out of view. Luke looked around and saw Travis.

"Why's Travis with you?" he asked.

"He and Leah are on a quest of their own," Percy said.

"Where's Leah?" Luke asked looking around but not seeing me.

"She's right here," Annabeth growled, pulling me into view. Suddenly loud music started playing one stall over.

"What's that?" Luke asked.

"I'll go check it out! Come on, Grover. You too, Travis." Annabeth grabbed their wrists and dragged them away. Percy and I were left with Luke. We heard yelling and the music stopped.

"I'm glad your all right, Leah," Luke said. I went a deep shade of crimson and looked away. Percy looked confused.

"So, what's happening at camp?" Percy asked.

"There been some fighting. Word got out about the Zeus vs Poseidon thing and people are taking sides. Chitons had to break up some fights," Luke said, "But anyway, how do you like the shoes? They work ok?" Percy looked guilty.

"Yeah their perfect," he said. He wasn't convincing. The image started to fade.

"Say bye to Annabeth for me! Tell Grover it won't be like last time!" Luke said, "And be careful, Leah! Love ya!" I was shocked and turned an even deeper crimson. Percy gave me a huge smile and started laughing. I shot him a murderous glare, but he just laughed harder. Of course that was when Grover, Travis, and Annabeth came back.

"Why are you so red after talking to Luke? And why is Percy dying of laughter?" Grover asked. Travis and Annabeth guess what had happened though. Annabeth shot me a murderous glare while Travis just looked furious. I shrunk down, but my stomach growled.

"We should probably find somewhere to eat," Travis said. He led the way to a diner and we walked in and sat down. A waitress came over to help us, but frowned when she saw the state of us.

"Do you have money to pay for this?" she asked skeptically. I couldn't blame her.

"Um. Well. You see." We were saved from another of Percy's horrible lies when a motorcycle pulled up. A biker got off and walked in. Everyone in the diner stood up. He sat at our table and everyone sat down again.

"I'll be paying," he said. The waitress just stood there. The man growled. "Are you still here?" he asked. He flicked his finger and she turned and walked to the kitchen. I realized that Travis, Grover and Annabeth looked at him fearfully, while Percy looked at him with fury. Then I realized it. This was Ares. Now I was pissed.

"So your Old Seaweed's kid, huh?" he asked.

"What's it to ya?" Percy responded, surprising me. He must be affected by Ares aura.

"Percy, this is..." Annabeth started, but Ares raised a hand.

"S'okay. I don't mind a little attitude. Long as you remember who's boss. You know who I am little cousin?" Ares said.

"Your Clarisse's dad," Percy said, "Ares, god of war."

"That's right, punk. Heard you broke Clarisse's spear."

"She was asking for it!"

"Probably. That's cool. I don't fight my kids' fights. I just have an errand for you to run." The waitress came back with a tray covered in food. Ares dropped a few gold drachmas on the table. The waitress picked them up.

"These aren't..."

"Problem, sweetheart?" Ares asked while cleaning his nails with a knife. The waitress gulped and walked away.

"You can't bully people like that!" Percy exclaimed.

"Are you kidding? This is the best country since Sparta! Don't you carry a weapon, punk? Dangerous world out there. Speaking of which, I have a little favo-" I didn't let him finish. It got up and stormed outside. When I got out, I leaned against the wall by Ares's bike. I looked through the window and saw him smirking. Percy was looking slightly puzzled, and everyone else looked mortified. Ares went back to talking about the favor, and everyone calmed down.

I looked at Ares bike and saw a ski mask. I decided to steal it. It couldn't be that important anyway. It was just a black ski mask. What could go wrong? I stuffed it in my pocket, thankful it didn't create a bulge. They kept talking for a while, then everyone fell into a kind of trance. Ares walked out and got on his motorcycle.

"Tell your dad I said hi will ya?" He drove off, laughing after saying this. I gritted my teeth and clenched my fists. I looked inside and everyone was waking up. The others joined me outside after talking for a bit. Travis glanced at me worriedly, but didn't ask. Percy wasn't so nice.

"Why'd you storm out like that?" I glared at him, then realized he genuinely didn't know. I smiled a bit, and when he got even more confused, I just laughed. I waved my hand dismissively, and he started walking to wherever we where going.

**RG: I hope you liked this chapter. And any guesses to what Leah actually stole? If you haven't guessed yet, you aren't a real part of this fandom. If you have, tell me your best guess as to what it will lead to. I want to know how close people are to my idea.**

_viva la vida_


	8. Connor's POV

**RG: I am sorry for the delay. I have this short chapter about Connor's story. I hope you like it. **

Connor's POV:

It was waayyyy too dark in here. I couldn't see my hand in front of my face! How was I supposed to escape if I couldn't even see my hand? The only time I had any light was when meals were brought in or when that bastard came to visit. To think! He was my fucking brother! Half-brother anyway. That two-faced, lying, cheating, no good son of a bitch L...

"How's the room, Connor? Comfortable?"

"Oh yeah. The only problem is the no good service, you bastard!" The jerk chuckled as if I was trying to be funny.

"Why are you so mad at me, Connor? You're away from that annoying brother of yours. I'm doing you a favor."

"Wow, then I should thank you I guess! Thank you so much for kidnapping me and beating me to a pulp, Luke!" I put as much sarcasm in my voice as I could. Of course he punished me for it. I got another slash from that weird sword of his. Buttbiter or something. It didn't matter what it was called, because it fucking hurt! I hissed in pain as I looked at the long slice down the length of my arm. He laughed as he headed for the door.

"She'll never forgive you!" I shouted. He froze and in the blink of an eye I had a matching slice on my other arm and a sword to my throat.

"Don't say that!" he yelled. I glared at him. "She loves me more than she ever liked you. I bet she never even kissed you, huh? Well she kissed me multiple times. How does that make you feel?" All the fight went out of me. I hung my head, and he left, laughing as he closed the door loudly. He had to be lying. It couldn't be true. Leah wouldn't do that to me. Would she?

**RG: Dramatic irony! Yes, Luke is the bad guy still. And he has a major bargaining chip. Connor's trust in Leah has also left him. What happens next? Find out in the next episode of _Hephaestus's Girl_... I apologize for the lame reference but I couldn't help it. **


	9. Chapter 7

**RG: I've decided I will post every Sunday. It will give me time to write better quality chapters, maybe longer ones. R&R!**

Chapter 7:  
The glorious sunset was ruined by the sign saying WAT R A D. Percy, Annabeth, and Grover were leading the way into the park. Travis and I were walking along behind them. Annabeth and Percy were talking about Ares, Aphrodite, and Hephaestus. I was amazed by how little he knew about Greek gods.  
"What are we going to do?" Travis asked suddenly. I looked at him questioningly, so he elaborated. "You were told to follow Percy, but we still haven't seen a trace of Connor anywhere." At the mention of his name, I recalled the dream I had. Who was that person in the shadows? And why did Connor say I trusted him? Why would I trust someone who would kidnap one of my best friends?  
The others snapped us both into the present.  
"How do we get in?" Percy asked. The gates loomed over us. Barbed wire covered the top.  
"Maia!" Grover shouted. His shoes sprouted wings and he flew over the fence. The rest of us had to go conventionally. Well, I didn't have to, but I didn't want them to think I was a freak. Annabeth went up first. She held the barbed wire out of the way for Percy so he could hold it for her. Then she took it back as Percy climbed down. She let Travis through, but the let go before I could go through.  
"Ops," she said, the single syllable hurting more than barbed wire. She jumped down, and I navigated the barbed wire myself. I was thankful she didn't say anything to me when I dropped to the ground. The three boys stared at me, and I realized my shirt was so torn I was only wearing a sports bra. I looked around and saw a merchandise store, full of clothes. Annabeth saw where I was looking and smiled.  
"Fresh clothes," she started walking towards it, and I shrunk away as she passed. I followed when she was a few feet in front. We were already in the store when the boys caught up.  
"You can't just-" Percy started before Annabeth interrupted him.  
"Watch me." She grabbed some clothes and marched into a stall. I followed suit and went into my own stall. By the time we were finished, we were walking advertisements, and we all had bags full of clothes. I finally noticed how my body was covered in cuts. I winced as the pain hit me. It wouldn't have been bad if it was one or two cuts, but my body was a checkerboard of lacerations. I looked at Annabeth fearfully. Why did she hate me so much? Was she jealous of the fact that Luke liked me? No, that was a silly thought. Why would anyone be jealous of me?  
Travis walked up to me, looking worried. "You okay?" I nodded, looking down at the ground as we went looking for Ares's shield. He pulled my chin up so that I was looking him in the face. "What's wrong?" I looked at him for a moment more before brushing his hand away and catching up to Percy, Grover, and Annabeth. I stood as far away from her as possible. She was talking to Percy and Grover. When she saw me she sent me a murderous glare. I shrunk away. Travis caught up to me and pulled me away from the others.  
"What's wrong?" he demanded. I bit my lip and looked down. I crossed my arms in front of me and he gasped. He had seen the scratches. "What happened?" he asked, truly worried. I glanced at Annabeth quickly, then looked down again. "What did she do?" Travis asked. I gave him a look that clearly said What do you think happened idiot? "Was that why you came down in shredded clothes?" I applauded sarcastically.  
"Hey, look!" Percy shouted excitedly. Travis and I walked over and joined them. Travis stood between me and Annabeth. "It the shield!" It certainly was Ares's shield. It was at the bottom of the entrance pool to the tunnel of love, in an old worn boat. Percy started scrambling down to it. "Ya coming Annabeth?" he asked.  
"Me? Go in the tunnel of love with you? No!" Annabeth said. Percy looked hurt, but he shrugged it off and continued down. I followed him. The others stayed at the top. Percy looked back and smiled when he saw me.  
"Come on!" he said, running ahead. He reached the boat before me. He was reaching for the shield when the sun glinted off something on it. I gasped and ran at him. He had already grabbed the shield, springing the trap, by the time I got there. The Cupid statues surrounding the bowl shot golden arrows trailing golden string to cover the top, trapping us in. The other tried to cut it, but they couldn't. Then it got worse.  
I heard clicking, and Annabeth screamed. I looked and saw an army of mechanical spiders headed towards us. They were coming from all sides. And even worse, the cuspids sprouted cameras. An announcer started saying we would be on air in 10 seconds. Fuck.  
One of the spiders came and bit my ankle. I picked it up and stuffed it in my bag before Percy started dragging me to the boat.  
"5 seconds!" the announcer announced. Percy dragged me into the boat and strapped us both in before he started concentrating.  
"3!" The pipes behind us started straining.  
"2!" The pipes were in agony.  
"1! Almost there!  
"0!" The announcer shouted as the pipes exploded. Good thing, we got out of there and the spiders were swept away. Bad thing, Percy was now unconscious and we were rocketing towards a giant wall. He would wake up in a few seconds, but he would be groggy, and we would be dead. There was one thing I could do, but I didn't want to. I could lose control. I could kill someone... Again. I looked at Percy and made a decision. I put a hand on his shoulder and thought of the gates. I guess that would be a good place. I remembered to grab the shield as I let fire teleport Percy and me to the gates. I looked at Percy and he was waking up. He had a bit more of a tan, but he wasn't hurt. I moved my hand from his shoulder and noticed that there was an imprint of my hand burned into his flesh. Shit.  
"What happened?" Percy asked groggily. I smiled hesitantly, hoping he wouldn't notice the burn, but hoping he would because that would mean it wasn't that bad. I might be able to heal it, but it would involve fire. And that was what caused this in the first place. I heard shouting from the area the others were and helped Percy up. He smiled. He still hasn't noticed the burn. I gently put my hand on it. He looked, and his face became confused. He couldn't feel it. Oops. "Why can't I feel your hand?" he asked fearfully. I removed my hand and his eyes widened. "Oh," was all he said. I gestured for him to lay down again. He did and I put my hand on his shoulder again. I concentrated and my hand lit up. Not on fire, but it was close. I gently touched the burn and it healed. I smiled as Percy stared at me, mystified. "How? What? Why? Huh?" he stammered. I looked away as he got up. "I have to tell the others!" He started running but I caught up and grabbed his arm, shaking my head. "What? You don't want me to tell them your the Human Torch?" I glared at him. This was serious. "Ok, ok. I won't tell them." I smiled gratefully, then let out a piercing whistle. I heard the shouting head towards us. That was that problem solved... For now.

**RG: Hope you liked it! I think I'll write more about Percy wanting to tell them Leah can use fire. It could be funny! Thanks for your time! See ya!**


	10. Chapter 8

**RG: Ok. So, obviously I haven't posted for a while... I am really sorry for that, but the school year was ending and teachers were giving us last minute work and such. But I have written the next part, so enjoy this chapter. **

Chapter 8:

The others caught up and started shouting, but I let Percy explain and headed to the entrance. The others caught up and we walked back to the diner.

We got there, and Ares was waiting for us. Percy handed him the shield, and he gave Percy a bag with money and food.

"There's your ride. Better get on fast. It's about to leave." He then drove away, leaving us to get in the truck before the truckers got back. We hid in the back as the guys came in. There was a zebra, and antelope, and a lion. They looked like they had been tortured. The lion would have been beautiful. He was an albino, but he was so skinny and covered in paint it hurt to look at him. The zebra and antelope were no better. The guys tortured the poor animals a bit before leaving and starting up the truck.

After the truck had set out, we set about helping the poor animals. The others were scared to go near the poor lion, but I went right up to the cage, reaching in to grab the turnips the stupid truckers had given this beautiful creature. I tossed them to Percy and grabbed the ground beef the other two animals had been given to give to the lion. He came over to me slowly, reaching his head out to sniff my meat filled hand. I put the trays of meat on the floor of the cage and pushed it towards him. He scarfed it down, then looked at me questioningly. He nudged my hand to see if there was anymore food, but I shook my head. He lay down next to me and I pet him. I looked at the others, still petting the lion, and they were shocked. I gestured for them to come closer. Percy tried to pet the lion, but it growled at him so he backed away.

Eventually, everyone but me was asleep. I took out the ski mask I had taken from Ares and looked at it closely. Why did a god have some kind of old ski mask anyway? As I turned it this way and that, it changed. Now I was holding a Greek helmet. It seemed familiar... Then it came crashing back to me. The reason I was at Camp Half-Blood. Why I was all beat up that first day. Wow. I had taken a real beating. I lost 7 years of my memory. My 7 years in the Underworld. My 7 years with Zane, son of Hades. I fell asleep remembering.

_ "Come on Le. Stop being so slow!" I silently laughed. Zane and I had been going out for a few months now. We were looking for Hades helm of darkness right now. He knew it was stolen, and wanted it back before the solstice. We had been searching for two months now. We were on Long Island right now, near the sound. It was getting late, so it was time to find a place to stay. We could get anything from a 5-star hotel to a cardboard box in an alley. Being on good terms with the god of wealth had benefits. We were swarmed by monsters on a regular basis because of Zane being a son of Hades, but we were unstoppable together. We had trained together for 7 years now. _

_ "Hurry up Le! I found a cool alleyway to stay in! It'll be sweet!" He got so excited by everything. We raced in, but were surprised by a drakon. We both got out our weapons, my hunters weapons, a gift from Lady Artemis, and his Stygian ice sword. We started to slowly back away, but it shot out a stream of fire at us. Just our luck. We find one of the rare drakons that breathes fire. It charged, so we jumped into battle. _

_ Ten minutes later, his sword, my bow, and my knives were all reduced to puddles. I had a single arrow left. We both could barely stand. The drakon charged me, planning on eating me whole. _

_ "Le!" Zane jumped in front of the charging drakon. He blocked it from getting me, but it's lower fangs impaled him through his chest. I stared at him with my mouth hanging open. "Run! Go! Get out of here!" I did, crying the whole time. I ran. But the drakon chased me, after pausing to eat Zane. I still had the single arrow. I got to country, away from the city, but the drakon was still chasing me. I turned my torso, aimed the arrow, and threw it. It hit the drakon straight in the eye. It delayed it long enough for me to lose it in the woods. I could see a pine tree in the distance. I saw a house when I reached the tree, but I tripped and my head hit the ground. Now I was rolling down the hill. _

_ Again and again my head hit the ground. Um... My name is... Leah, I think. I'm 14, right? I'm mute. I accidentally killed my mother and sister in a fire I made. Wait, I can use fire. _

**RG: Did you like it? Yep. Leah had lost her memory. This leaves you with more questions doesn't it? Now that she remembers Zane, will she still love Luke, Connor and Travis? The answer is... I have not thought of the answer yet. So, you'll find out when I do. I should post the next part in a week. So look forward to it! See ya!**


	11. Notice 9-15-13

**RG: Hey guys! I am really sorry for the long pause! I am having major writers block and could use some help. I was wondering if you guys would me to write another person's POV for a chapter to give some variety. Would you like a chapter from Travis's mind for a bit? Do you want more of Leah's memories maybe? Seriously guys. I need input. I have great plans for the future parts of this story (HINT: Leah won't be mute for long!) but I am having trouble with the road to that part. i love writing and will post a real update ASAP! Lots of love**


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